Slant Factory seeks to fill contemporary void in local art

June 14, 2013

CHARLES TOWN-What began as a one-night-only art show has turned into a yearlong work in progress by three young regional artists.

Annie Cropper, of Berryville, Va.; Joshua Hawkins, of Harpers Ferry; and Jess Oberdick, of Shepherdstown, opened the Slant Factory - located on the second floor of an East Liberty Street building in Charles Town - last spring, its inaugural show being the capstone exhibit of the Shepherd University seniors.

"We (wanted to) find a place that was under our control, so we could do some artwork that wasn't something we could put up in a night, something that we could install and have time to work with," Hawkins, a mixed-media and installation artist, said.

Article Photos

Journal photo by Rachel Molenda

Joshua Hawkins, Jess Oberdick and Annie Cropper are the founding members of The Slant Factory, located at 202 E. Liberty St. in Charles Town. The group hosts monthly one-night-only art shows at the space in order to provide area artists with a free, unjuried space to show their work.

Both Hawkins and Cropper were looking for a space that would lend itself well to installation pieces, which took about a month to construct.

For Oberdick, the mood of the space was important. A painter, Oberdick's pieces were large format paintings, "almost like alter pieces," she said.

"I was even originally looking at presenting my work in an old church," Oberdick said. "This just kind of reminded me of old churches that I'd seen in Italy that were really dirty and dingy and dark."

Myriad responses came from the group when asked what were their first reactions to seeing the space. Cropper sighed and made a noise akin to, "ugh." Hawkins chuckled. The three of them exchanged glances.

"You walked into your uncle's attic," Cropper said.

The former microfilm factory and Ford garage was essentially being used as storage space for the building's owner. It contained "everything you need," including a Volvo engine and an old Western Auto sign.

The three spent their spring break making repairs to the space, a task which Hawkins said was two weeks of work crammed into one. Unfinished walls were completed, new walls were built and a handrail was installed.

"While everyone else was deciding whether or not they could get the Entler (Hotel), we were figuring out if we could time out renovating almost an entire second floor and fixing things," Hawkins said.

After graduating, the founders, contemplating what they would do with the rest of their lives, talked a lot about the idea of hosting one-night-only art shows. Then they committed.

"Once you set dates, you can't go back," Oberdick said.

The Slant Factory hosted three shows that Fall.

At its core, The Slant Factory is in the Eastern Panhandle to offer a place for artists who otherwise wouldn't show their work, Oberdick said. The group shows it holds are not juried, so what is submitted gets displayed.

"We have a strong interest in displaying art that can't be displayed almost any other time, because of content, because of size or alternative base processes, such as installation-based artwork," Hawkins said. "That's why we started this place."

Oberdick also spoke of high costs to artists at some galleries, as well as a lack of interest in art that isn't "safe."

"A lot of times galleries will show work that they think is going to sell, as opposed to showing newer, contemporary work, or work that's experimenting," Oberdick said. "We're just kind of blessed that we can show whatever people want to show."

Hawkins said its presence has also strengthened the area's artist network.

"(Artists) enjoy, just once a month, meeting up, seeing new artwork and keeping the involvement in such a small community," Hawkins said. "It's a place where new artists (and) artists who have been doing this for years have a chance to mingle together."

As a volunteer-run art space that receives no profit from the shows it hosts, The Slant Factory has reached out to the community at large for support. It was awarded a grant by the Arts and Humanities Alliance of Jefferson County, which funds the space's maintenance, promotional materials and the electric bill - the only charge The Slant Factory incurs in using the space.

The Slant Factory's next art show, entitled "Wild," will take place Thursday, June 20, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. It will feature Shepherd University student Holly Hilmer's silver gelatin photographs, as well as music by Sam Woodworth.